Does anyone have any educated guess as to how king tut died? I know the answer remains a mystery even for the best scientists all over the world, but does anyone have an answer that would seem conviencing to ohh say, 6th grade kids. If so please reply ASAP.

Researchers haven't come to anything closely approximating a concensus about the circumstances of Tutankhamun's death. We know it was premature, as he was young, but that is the extent of our absolutes.

Several specialists have been circling about the notion that he was murdered, the most likely suspect being the cheif advisor, Ay, in an attempt to take the throne after the boy-king's death. X-rays of his skull reveal a calcified blood clot at it's base that could indicate a blow from a blunt implement, eventually resulting in death. This thickening of bone in the cranium would take a long while to build, indicating the young Pharaoh may have been bleeding a long while before he actually died, perhaps as long as two months. One investigator was quoted as saying "The blow was to a protected area at the back of the head, which you don't injur in an accident. Someone had to sneak up from behind.

Ay was a commoner, yet in the painting in Tutankhamun's burial chamber, the advisor is wearing the leopard skin garb of a high priest and the crown of a pharaoh during the "opening of the mouth" ceremony. Tut didn't have any children to succeed him, so it makes sense that Ay would be a likely candidate for taking the throne.

Add to this that there were a few suspicious deaths following soon after Tutankhamun's. His wife, Ankhesenamum, had the king of the Hittites send her one of his sons for a husband, as she did not wish to marry a servant such as Ay. A son was sent, but he was murdered before he even arrived.

Though it isn't certain, it seems Ankhesenamum eventually married Ay. There was a ring found with her cartouche inscribed next to his. Within three years of Ay's death, Ankhesenamum dissapeared. Ay himself died a few years after seizing the throne. His cartouches were eradicated, his tomb robbed and vandalized and his mummy vanished.

Another theory suggests Tutankhamun was murdered by General Horemheb, another commoner who became one of the king's closest advisors. After Tutankhamun and Ay died, Horemheb became pharaoh. It was he who erased the names of Ankhenaten, Tutankhamun and Ay removed from the royal list of pharaohs, suggesting he had personal investitures in the matter.He also took some of Tut's treasure and slapped his name on it.

For all we know, it was the king's personal attendant or cup-bearer, the only people allowed to enter his chamber or approach his back.

The study of the political structure suggests the king had few enemies. The was loved by the priests and the population, due to his re-establishment of the state religion after Akhenaton. In truth, there was little to be gained by either Ay or Horemheb with his death, as he was young and held very little, if any, actual authority.

On the pedestal of one of Horenhab's statues, there is a text leaving a message to all Egyptians, declaring he was loyal to his king and carried out all his orders faithfully. He also warned not to forget what foreigners did to King Tutankhamen.

There are other theories stating the mummy suffered the headwound long after death. The poor state of the body makes it difficult to discern.

Popular theory is that he was murdered. It may never be known for certain.

The following is quoted from MSN, reguarding multiple Egyptan archaeologists. Very interesting stuff.

"The results of a CT scan done on King Tut’s mummy indicate the boy king was not murdered, but may have suffered a badly broken leg shortly before his death at age 19 — a wound that could have become infected, Egypt’s top archaeologist said Tuesday.

About 1,700 images were taken of Tut’s mummy during the 15-minute CT scan aimed at answering many of the mysteries that shrouded his life and death — including his royal lineage, his exact age at the time of his death and the reason he died.

“I believe these results will close the case of Tutankhamun, and the king will not need to be examined again,” Hawass said. “We should now leave him at rest. I am proud that this work was done, and done well, by a completely Egyptian team.”

Tutankhamun’s short life has fascinated people since his tomb was discovered in 1922 in the fabled Valley of the Kings in the southern Egyptian city of Luxor by a British archaeologist, Howard Carter. The find revealed a trove of fabulous treasures in gold and precious stones that showed the wealth and craftsmanship of the Pharaonic court

Hawass had long refused to allow DNA testing on Tut’s remains and only agreed to perform a noninvasive CT scan on the mummy, which has since been returned to its tomb. The CT machine was brought from Germany and donated by Siemens and National Geographic.

Insights into Tut's life
The study, which was the first CT scan on a member of Egypt’s ancient royalty, showed that Tut was of a slight build, well-fed and healthy and suffered no major childhood malnutrition or infectious diseases.

The boy king also had a slight cleft palate, which was not however associated with an external expression, like a hair-lip, or other facial deformities. He also had large incisor teeth and the typical overbite characteristic of other kings from his family. His lower teeth were also slightly misaligned.

Ruled out also were pathological causes for Tut’s bent spine and elongated skull, which had been noted in earlier examinations. His head shape appeared normal and spine was bent as a result of how royal embalmers had positioned his body.

Tut’s lineage also has long been in question. It’s unclear if he is the son or a half brother of Akhenaten, the “heretic” pharaoh who introduced a revolutionary form of monotheism to ancient Egypt and who was the son of Amenhotep III.

He is believed to have been the 12th ruler of ancient Egypt’s 18th dynasty and ascended to the throne at about the age of 8 and died around 1323 B.C."

Read the official scan report here:
http://www.guardians.net/hawass/press_r ... esults.htmAs you can see, opinion was divided on the broken leg--if it occurred before or after death was not a 100% opinion.
All in all, Tutankhamen seems to have been a fairly heathy young man, who happened to die at the age of 19!
As Hawass says, there can be no doubt there was a murder conspiracy, but there is no physical evidence of murder.

You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot post attachments in this forum